Beetroot and Feta Dip – The Prettiest Dip in the World

Tags

beet, beetroot, dip, feta, spread

Forgive me readers for I have sinned. It’s been 10 days since my last post… (och there’s no way that line’s not been used before…). Anyway, it has been a while but this week’s been crazy, as was last weekend. I hosted a Thanksgiving dinner yesterday (a day later but Thursday was a school night here!) and was cooking for about 3 days… Look out for my next post for details.

Within the madness however, I did manage a quick post on my Greek pages. Quick being the operative word! I’d been thinking about going to Food Blogger Connect (#FBC5) in London in July, and I was looking for a blogger buddy in order to benefit from the Early Bird offer of 2-4-1 (ending tomorrow). It suddenly occurred to me to buddy up with someone from here in Greece. So I asked the nice peeps over at Greek Food Blogs and they suggested I write a post which they would promote within the online community. It took but a couple of hours and hey presto, Sugar Flowers Creations left a comment and we’re now looking for cheap flights! Yay!

As I really needed to get that post up as quickly as possible, I chose to include one of my easiest and simplest recipes from the “to-blog” list. The idea for this dip came from two things. First was a gorgeous salad a friend brought to a summer BBQ. Pieces of juicy, sweet and earthy beetroot, teamed with chunks of rich and creamy feta cheese. A match made in heaven. A few weeks later I was drooling surfing the website of another friend, who owns a company that imports/exports food (Elli & Manos). And I landed on this page. I knew I would love the beet/feta spread. So when I found myself with some leftover cooked beetroot and half a tub of feta that was begging to be eaten up, I wondered what would happen if I chucked them in the blender. The result was pretty amazing, in taste and in appearance! In my Greek post I didn’t mention where I got my inspiration, which was my bad, so I’d like to make it right. Elli doesn’t even know I’m writing this, so please don’t think it’s a sponsored post or anything. I haven’t tried their dip but how can it not work? It’s got beetroot and feta in it! (they’re based in Greece and the UK but check with them about delivery to other countries)

Here’s my version (would you please look at that colour? Is it not the prettiest colour ever?)

Beetroot and Feta Dip

Makes 1 small batch

Ingredients

180g beetroot, cut into chunks (I used the pre-cooked vacuum packed version. Might be even nicer with roast beetroot. Scrub, cut each into 4 or 6 wedges, toss in a bit of oil and roast for about an hour-90 min or until you can stick a fork in it)
80g feta cheese, crumbled
1 tsp oil
1 tsp vinegar (I used red wine vinegar and it was quite strong tasting. You might want to start with ½ tsp and add as needed)
1/2 tsp dried oregano
Scant 1/4 tsp white pepper
1/8 tsp salt (watch the salt because feta has loads already!)

Instructions

Add all ingredients to a blender and pulse till smooth.
(My shortest “Directions” section ever!)

If you love beetroot (do you know it apparently cleans your blood?) check these out:
Beetroot borani recipe (borani chogondar) by Nami-Nami
Beet Chop/Beetroot Patty by Sunshine and Smile
Beet Hummus by Simply Recipes
Beet and Sweet Potato Stacks by The Kitchn

Melitzanosalata: 2 Ways to make Aubergine (Eggplant) Dip

Tags

aubergine, dip, eggplant, melitzanosalata, salad, spread, vegetarian

You’ve probably come across the –salata ending on a couple of Greek salad/dip types of food, the most common being Taramosalata (it’s with an “o” not an “a”). Salata obviously means salad, and in some cases when it’s on the end of a word it refers to a dip or spread made out of whatever the first part of the word is. So taramosalata is a dip made with taramas (fish roe), tyrosalata is a dip made with tyri (cheese, usually feta), maidanosalata is a dip made with parsley, and the list goes on… Every Greek restaurant has at least some of these, and they are best eaten with crusty bread or in some cases chips (French fries). Greeks will rarely order a starter each, they mostly have a selection of nibbles in the middle of the table and share these before the main course arrives. And more often than not, these “mezes” are enough to feed an army, let alone the people at the table!

This dip is called Melitzanosalata because it’s made with melitzana, which means aubergine or eggplant depending on where you’re reading from. You may recall a previous post, where I used aubergines from a friend’s garden. I still had some left over and they were beginning to look very unhappy. Actually I’m surprised they lasted that long. So yesterday I decided to test a couple of recipes, to see which I liked more. They are both taken from Greek websites, so I’ll link because it’s the right thing to do, but I’ll save you a click by telling you you’d have to read Greek to make any sense!

I made small quantities because these were tests, and also because garlic is just about forbidden in this flat by a certain Mister. And these are pretty garlicky!

Both recipes start out with cooking the aubergines, preferably on a charcoal BBQ or an open flame. This is not possible in a flat, so I thought I’d stick them under the grill (broiler) till they blackened on all sides. You know, like we do peppers. Yeah, this is all good if you are aware of one thing. Aubergines explode. Literally. The first batch was ok, with a small piff and a few seeds popping out of one of the fruit. During the second round though I heard a loud (and I mean loud) bang, which I thought was a door slamming. It wasn’t. It was an aubergine Molotov that had just ruined the next half hour of my life (spent cleaning splotches of goo and seeds off the inside of my oven). I don’t know if pricking them beforehand would have helped. Anyhow, I saved most of the flesh and used it, hoping for the best. It was fine in the end, but I’m sure it would have tasted even better if the skins had fully charred and the insides softened more. Apparently, if you have a gas cooker (the ones with a flame instead of a hob) you can cook them on that. I have no idea how you would go about it though, so don’t hold me to it.

Melitzanosalata #1 – From Mount Athos (the place where no women are allowed. Yes, there is such a place in Greece. In this day and age!)
Serves 2

What you need:
3 small aubergines (eggplants)
1 small or ½ large roasted red pepper (from a jar)
1 garlic clove, peeled
2 Tbs olive oil
1 ½ Tbs vinegar
Salt & pepper

What you do:

1. Preheat grill (broiler). Place the aubergines on an oven rack or tray under the grill. Get them up close to save time. Grill until they are black on all sides. You want the skin to burn. You don’t want them to explode, but you’ll have to risk it because I don’t know how to avoid it. You can try pricking them first with a fork in a few places. Cross your fingers.
2. If all goes well, let the aubergines cool for a few minutes. Then cut into the skin at the top (where the stem is) and make a slit down to the bottom. Open up the skin and scoop out the flesh. Put it into a bowl and mash it with a fork. I used a knife and fork and sort of mashed/chopped it.
3. Chop the roasted red pepper and add it to the bowl.
4. Put the garlic, oil and vinegar in a food processor and whiz into a dressing.
5. Add half the dressing to the bowl with some salt and pepper, and stir it all well. Taste and add more dressing if necessary (I didn’t).
6. Put it in the fridge and leave it for a while so the tastes can mingle and get to know each other. While you clean your oven.

Note: This is really garlicky. It was a bit strong for my taste, but I’m not a huge garlic fan to begin with. I took some to my mum who is, and she loved it. It’s actually supposed to be like this, but you can adjust it to suit your palate. Original recipe on Matia website.

Melitzanosalata #2 – With Yogurt and Walnuts, by chef Argiro Barbarigou
Serves 4

What you need:
2 medium aubergines
4 Tbs olive oil
1 Tbs vinegar
1 clove garlic, mashed (or pressed through the garlic-press-thingy)
½ cup walnut crumbs (use a food processor to blend them until sand-like)
½ tub (100g) Greek yogurt (I used 2%)
Salt & pepper to taste

What you do:

1. Follow steps 1 & 2 from above.
2. Add oil, vinegar, garlic. Mix.
3. Add walnut crumbs. Mix.
4. If it’s cooled down enough add yogurt. Mix.
5. Refrigerate.

Note: This has a mellower taste. Original recipe (in Greek) here.

Enjoy both dips on top of crusty bread, rusks, or toasted baguette slices.

Other great looking recipes using aubergines:
Slow Cooker Punjabi Eggplant with Potatoes from The Perfect Pantry (I’ve tried this, love it!)
Spicy Grilled Eggplant and Zucchini Salad with Thai Flavors from Kalyn’s Kitchen
Italian Grilled Eggplant Cakes by Andrea Meyers
Easy Baked Eggplant Parmigiana by Food Blogga